Hometown HiFi: The Evolution of Sound System Culture

The rise of the sound system in Jamaica in the 1960s involved crowds flocking around speakers, eclipsing performers in popularity, and ultimately spread globally to form a musical revolution. The movement ignited a culture around listening out loud together that would influence a wide variety of music genres for decades to come.

In the new Hometown HiFi exhibition at Sonos Studio, we wanted to explore the origins of the movement that played a significant role in what we bring to the world today. The following film takes you through the history of the sound system from individuals who have played a part – including Seb Carayol, a noted expert in Dub culture and Hometown HiFi curator, as well as legendary Dub artist, Mad Professor and also Scientist, among others.

The exhibition, showing at Sonos Studio in LA through April 24, includes artifacts from the 1960s that are debuting in the US for the first time: including King Tubby’s sound system, one of the most treasured original sound systems from the 1960s (and it’s still working!), three of the original films on the movement – “Babylon”, “Deep Roots Music” and “Musically Mad” – and photos by Pekka Vuorinen, Tero Kaski and Beth Lesser. We hope you enjoy it.

Sonos Studio is located at 145 N. La Brea in Los Angeles. For more information and to get on the list for upcoming events, visit sonos-studio.com.